


Pizza, Nightmares and Tea : the Beginning of Every Good Apprenticeship

by Loeily



Series: Demon and Angel AU [1]
Category: Captain America (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Magical Realism, Bucky is a millenial and a demon, Captain America Steve Rogers/Modern Bucky Barnes, Comfort/Angst, Demon Bucky Barnes, Guardian Angel Bucky Barnes, Guardian Angels, M/M, Pre-Relationship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-03-29
Updated: 2017-03-29
Packaged: 2018-10-12 07:36:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,220
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10485642
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Loeily/pseuds/Loeily
Summary: Bucky is a demon who is trying to become an angel.He has only his apprenticeship left to do before he gets his diploma. And what better job for a 6 month apprenticeship than guardian angel duty ?When Bucky is asigned by the council to Captain America, national icon and a real life superhero, Bucky doesn’t understand why of all people Captain America would need a Guardian Angel.But once he gets to see how much of ruthless mess Steve Rogers is, he gets it. And he’s got A LOT of work to do. Better start with the small things, right ?Aka the Modern!Demon!Bucky and Cap!Steve AU that no one asked for.





	

**Author's Note:**

> I wrote this to warlockintraining and edited the thing. I hope you will have fun reading it. I loved writing this ficlet so expect some more of this AU in the future.  
> Big thanks to Alix and Nel for the beta \o/

Their first encounter had been short and filled with very serious discussions about what Bucky's contract would imply.

Only mere minutes after meeting him Bucky had showed him his contract. And told him since he was a demon it wasn't going to be breakable, like usual contracts between humans and angels, that the bond would be stronger. And so, that he would be able to come help Steve whenever his presence was needed.

Bucky had also said it was very important that he understood that the whole bond thing implies transparency and some level of consent to the occasional breach of intimacy and personal life.

So he should think it over.

Of course the first thing Steve had asked was "So you'll read my thoughts ?"

"Dude of course NO ! I'll just be able to sense if you're in danger, feel bad, need help, are hurt and you know, generally unwell. And my job is to keep you as safe and happy as possible. And I need to work on it with you. It means that if something really upset you, I’ll know. And my job will be to work on it with you. You won't be able to avoid it. So, if you don't want someone who constantly can tell where you are and how you feel maybe tell me right now."

And it did sound like quite the dubious violation of privacy.

Which was the main reason why Bucky needed to figure out what their respective boundaries were over regular meetings.

But in the end, it had not been enough to scare Steve away. After all, he had once signed his body off to the government for experimentation in a secret military program. And he guessed at least if it didn’t work, it would be reversible in six months – at the end of Bucky’s apprenticeship.

Bucky became Steve's guardian angel on paper. Confidentiality agreements and several other documents of legal bindings that were part of dealing with the Avengers and government secrets were signed. They then proceeded to do the more physical part of the contract.

Which turned out to be some sort of blood ritual. Not the kind Steve would have thought of after watching so many bad Hollywood blockbusters featuring demons and contracts and haunted houses. This one was more similar to the kind you did when you were 8 and swore to your best friend you were now blood brothers, after pressing two cut palms together and taking an oath.

Steve felt a bit dozy after it, but he was assured it was normal. Angel apprenticeship contracts were not originally made for demons, hence the overwhelming feeling of a thousand needles prickling his skin. So there was no reason to be afraid, Bucky seemed to know what he was doing.

The truth was that for all his training and good grades, Bucky was completely at loss about how to handle Captain America as a charge. Would he have to protect him during fight against aliens ? To help him with technology and show him around ? Would Steve even like to be shown around ?

And on this decidedly not panicky line of thought, Bucky decided it would be his first mission to get to know Steve better. He would become the best guardian angel ever.

* * *

After a few weeks, where they had little chats every once in a while and watched movies together and generally enjoyed each other's company, they became tentative friends.

They had made plans to go buy ice cream at Jonah's place on Sunday after Steve's training session. They had spend several afternoonse at Bucky's home playing Mario kart and sharing stories.

Bucky’s first lesson regarding privacy and the art of “not panicking when your charge suddenly feels sick” was hard learned. To Bucky’s defence, feeling a supersoldier going from fine to sick to the point of throwing up in the span of 4 minutes was worrying. He had appeared just in time, inside Steve’s bathroom, to witness Steve heaving over the picket fence, pallid and both arms clamping the toilet lid.

Half an hour later, Steve had proceeded to explain to Bucky that he had eaten some pizza leftovers and gotten food poisoning. Obviously not meeting Bucky’s eyes during the whole conversation except at the very end, in defiance, as if to say “I dare you to judge me now”. It was a very awkward moment.  
When Bucky found the inedible pizza and noted it had been rotting on the coffee table for at least 3 days, it was all dry and smelled awful, Bucky had asked what the hell was he thinking, trying to eat that. This thing smelled like it went through hell and back before crawling back to go die in Steve’s apartment. He thought Steve was an adult ! Not a 19 year old college frat bro !

It was quite the ice breaker. And it had served as a lesson too. No breaking in people’s house – even if it was not technically breaking in – and no glorification of Steve as Captain America. The guy was just Steve, an idiot who couldn’t take care of himself, clearly.

And after what he had called “the pizza incident”, Bucky had been sticking to their planned meetings.

Thankfully, now they were having fun and Steve seemed happy enough to entertain a guest several days a week. No more awkward conversations and long silences where Steve couldn’t look at him. It was all good for Steve, who got to have a friend outside of SHIELD.

For Bucky it was different. He’s a man on a mission.

He still had lots of fun with Steve but he discreetly stored everything he noticed about the man away for further examination. Because if one thing was clear once you knew Steve Rogers, it was that he's depressed as hell. And probably enjoying some nice trauma and guilt driven nightmares every other night.

Bucky had been woken up by the pull of Steve’s distress on a regular basis. But after the whole throwing up incident he had learnt not to just barge into Steve's apartment at any hour of the day or night. At least not without making some pre-diagnostic to be sure it was serious enough for him to show up. Let the guy have his privacy.

Nightmare sucks sure, but he was not going to just show up and trump over Steve's ego and dignity to lecture him about PTSD at 3 in the morning. That would be insensitive at best, and Sam would skin him alive if he knew. Also, this is not how you deal with sleeping disorders. Even if his sleep deprived self sometimes wished it were. Bad sleep deprived self.

So yeah, getting to know Steve and building trust so maybe Steve can mention his troubles with bedtime hours. Bucky would then suggest like a good friend that maybe talking to a counsellor might help. And if it was not enough, maybe ask Sam – because he too used to have trouble sleeping.

Everything would have been fine.

Except obviously it was not.

Steve keept having nightmares and wouldn't breath a word of it. Even when he knew Bucky knew. Or at least should know. They had had that talk about Bucky sensing Steve distress right ? Did Steve remember or even understand what it implied ?

To say Bucky was getting frustrated would be the understatement of the century.

So he did what any sensible demon being would have done in his place. He asked google.  
Did you know there were lot of results for "how to make your charge stop bullshitting you" ?

After 30 minutes of fruitless research (Recipes for truth serum potions aside), he decided that showing up next time Steve couldn’t sleep was not that bad of a plan after all.

He would wait for Steve to be awake and mostly back to normal, appear in his kitchen, make him tea or coffee, or whatever he had in his cupboard, and go knock on his door and ask if he wanted company to watch Friends on Netflix until dusk.

“Good plan, brain. Steve will not resent you that. Maybe. Probably not too much at least.”

And Bucky didn't have to wait longer than 3 days before he had a chance to put his plan to action.

When he felt the pulling of Steve's panic, he woke up and sat in his bed, waiting for the panic to subside. Once he was pretty sure he could feel Steve's pulse slowing down, he let himself be summoned. He was careful to appear in the kitchen as planned. In the cupboard he found tea — bingo ! — and two mugs.

He poured water in both and settled one on the counter. The second mug in hand, he walked to Steve's room and knocked on the door.

He barely heard the voice telling him to please come in, and turn the light on.

He couldn't have been prepared for what he saw inside.

Oh Lord, what a sight to behold. Steve's room was a MESS. Clothes everywhere, unfinished sketches, different sketchbooks on every flat surface and countless books in partially crumbled piles under the window.

And this was not taking into account Steve himself prostrated over what looked like an old sketchbook, dishevelled and in far too many layers of sweatshirts.

He definitely should have staged this intervention earlier.

He put down the warm mug on the floor near the bed. He noticed the night-stand was barely visible under the piles of clothes, junk and books.

He approached Steve like a wounded animal, slowly and putting effort into showing he was armless. Steve didn't even look up. His eyes fixed on what was in the sketchbook.

Bucky was at loss for words and just sat on the far end of the bed. Searching for words of comfort or some advice he might have been given by Sam or his foster parents.

After what had seemed to be an eternity of heavy silence, Bucky heard a murmur of "I wondered when you'd come"

Instantly Bucky felt guilt spiking bellow his ribcage, but Steve's next words soothed him.

"I know you didn't want to push me or something. I didn't want you to see that. But I knew you'd be fed up with me soon enough. Come and see the mess first-hand, right ?"

Bucky didn't even know where to start. The bitterness in Steve's voice, the way he talked of himself, or the fact he still hadn't looked up.

"Hey Steve, no. It's okay. I'm here for you. You won't make me go anywhere !"

"I see…"

And obviously he had picked the worst thing to start with and now had made Steve think Bucky was stuck with him. Good job Buck.

"No ! I mean, I'm here if you want to talk, or not. It's up to you, gotta say maybe talking would be a healthier plan but ok, whatever you're ready for."

And Steve was looking at him now, good. That was improvement. Oh god these eyes. The pain in them.

"I waited for you to be ready but obviously it's more serious than I thought and maybe you needed me to show you I'm here for that too. Not that I'm forced to ! I'd love to ! Ah ! Not that I love seeing you like that ! Ehh I mean having nightmares or something. Or ehhh... I made you tea ? You like tea right ?"

So smooth Bucky. Now you are babbling like mad and he probably hates you.

"Tea ?"

The sketchbook now long forgotten, Steve looked at the cup on the floorboards as if he hadn't noticed it before. He turned back to a flailing Bucky and offered him a shy smile.

"Thank you"

"You- you're welcome, maybe it's a bit cold now. I can warm it up if you want"

Without waiting for an answer he picked up the mug and held it in both hands. Bucky kept hold of it a few seconds, a faint glow radiating from his hand clasped around the ceramic.

"There, should be warm enough"

Steve took the mug and looked transfixed at the now warm mug. He looked up and asked Bucky how he had done that.

Bucky chuckled and held his sight, pointing at himself

"Demon, remember ? I can use my powers in this realm too."

Steve’s grin got bigger, and his presence felt more solid, less like he would crumple at the wrong words.

"Does it mean you used hellfire to warm up my tea ?"

After some coaxing and a few more tentative jokes exchanged between the two, they relocated to the kitchen and Bucky warmed up his own tea too. This time, while explaining to Steve the process of exchanging energy and how it produces warmth.

They didn’t talk about the sketchbook, the nightmares or Steve's messy room that night. But in the morning when Bucky had fallen asleep on Steve's couch Steve promised himself he would talk seriously to him after he got some well deserved sleep. Couldn't keep waking up his guardian and worry him every night. And also maybe, this feeling in his chest was telling him to trust Bucky with more. (Maybe with his life, maybe with his heart). Together they slept. It was the best 4 hours of sleep they both had had in a while.

★End★

**Author's Note:**

> I'm not a native speaker so any mistakes are mine. Feel free to point them out.  
> Thank you for reading.  
> I live for your kudos and comments :)


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